The Dallas Cowboys were off on Wednesday after practicing on back-to-back days to kick off Week 2 of training camp. With the pads finally on, practice clips have taken on a different feel. Even with players instructed to keep the contact under control, it was clear they were eager to hit.
Christian Parker's defense dominated on Monday. The defensive line controlled the line of scrimmage, linebackers flew to the football, and coverage in the secondary was airtight. However, the pendulum swung back toward the middle on Tuesday.
While it's still too early to draw definitive conclusions, two padded practices have already revealed a few notable trends, both positive and negative.
Positive and negative Cowboys trends from two padded practices of training camp
Jaydon Blue is a problem (the good kind)
As stingy as Dallas' defense has been, it hasn't been able to prevent Blue from creating explosive plays. That continued on Tuesday, as Blue had a big gain on a screen pass.
The former Texas product has natural hands, and his speed makes him a difficult cover out of the backfield. Considering how ineffective Williams was as a pass-catcher last season -- something the Cowboys are hoping to correct this year -- that's an area where Blue can really flex his muscles.
Not since early in the Ezekiel Elliott era has Dallas had a dynamic screen game. Through two padded practices, Blue is showing that he can remedy that.
DeMarvion Overshown's burst is back
There were questions about how nimble Overshown would look following a second major knee surgery. It didn't take long for the former Longhorn to quiet those concerns.
On Monday, he exploded into the backfield and blew up Hunter Luepke, Jaydon Blue's lead blocker on a red-zone carry, forcing Blue to change course.
It was the biggest hit of camp so far, and it's encouraging that Overshown delivered it. He didn't show the same burst or explosiveness after returning from injured reserve last season. Understandable given the severity of the knee injury he was coming back from, but he looks every bit as explosive as he did before the injury.
Shavon Revel's best day as a Cowboy
Revel's performance is one of the biggest developments in Oxnard. The first week of practice was a positive indicator, and it has translated into padded practices.
Monday was comfortably Revel's best day as a Cowboy. He held his own in coverage against both CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens and finished the afternoon with three pass breakups. An interception was the only thing missing to make it a perfect day at the office.
If we had to nitpick, Revel needs to be less handsy. He's already been flagged for a couple of pass interference penalties. In a league whose refs are easily baited into DPI calls, Revel must learn to trust his length and technique.
All in all, though, he's been a huge positive.
Cowboys' rookie class is shining
Cowboys fans are waiting patiently for Downs' first splash play. He's had a couple of near interceptions, but those will come. In the meantime, he's been steady as a rock and consistently around the football.
Similarly, Jaishawn Barham's stock continues to soar. He won a pass-rush rep against All-Pro left guard Tyler Smith and nearly got to Dak Prescott. Prescott sensed the pressure and got rid of the ball, but the play was a reminder of the pass-rush juice Barham brings as an off-ball linebacker.
Fourth-round pick Devin Moore was having a quiet camp until Monday, when he clamped CeeDee Lamb on a goal-line fade. Lamb thought DPI should've been called, but it was a clean rep from Moore, who showed off his length and physicality to fight through hand-fighting.
CeeDee Lamb drops have returned
Let's preface by saying that we aren't the least bit concerned about Lamb. It's been impossible to keep track of how many plays he's made in camp. He's been borderline dominant. Recovered and rested following a season disrupted by injuries, Lamb should have a monster bounce-back season.
Having said that, The Athletic's Jon Machota reported that Lamb's had more drops in camp than he's used to seeing (h/t the Cowboys Collective podcast).
"I would say, out of the top players, the only thing noticeable to me is that there's been a few more drops from CeeDee Lamb than I've seen in previous early camps," Machota said. "He had another one today (Tuesday). He had a couple in one of the previous practices. Passes that he should catch 10 out of 10 times. ..."
This would be a non-story if Lamb didn't struggle with drops last season. He cost Dallas big time in its Week 1 loss to Philadelphia and had another couple of drops in the Cowboys' come-from-behind win over the Eagles, giving him eight for the season.
Again, nobody's sounding the alarms. It would just be nice to see Lamb clean it up over the next few weeks before the regular season.
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